


Homecoming

by Burgie



Category: Star Stable Online
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-17
Updated: 2020-08-17
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:48:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,566
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25957006
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Burgie/pseuds/Burgie
Summary: At long last, Lisa finally returns to the ranch.
Relationships: Lisa Peterson/Louisa Mcburg
Kudos: 7





	Homecoming

Starshine Ranch looked… different, after everything that had just happened. It was normal, the farmhands wandering about, exercising horses or moving feed or hay around. Part of Louisa envied them that normalcy, even as she knew that maybe normalcy would be returning sooner than she thought. After all, Lisa was by her side, albeit with pink dust settled in her red hair (which stuck out in odd strands) and in the fleece lining of her mother’s coat.

“You don’t have to come straight back here if you don’t want to,” Louisa reminded her again.

“No, I… I do,” said Lisa, finally raising her gaze from the back of Starshine’s neck. There were tears in her eyes, though they weren’t the ones that had made tracks through the pink dust on her face. “I need to see dad again and let him know that- that I’m alright. That we’re finally back from our ride. Couple of weeks late, but.” She gave a laugh that turned into a sob, and Louisa moved Goldmist so that they stood closer together again, her arm going around Lisa’s back. Her heart raced anew as her girlfriend leaned into her one-armed embrace, trembling.

“What’s wrong?” Starshine asked. “You know you don’t need to worry about explaining things to your father, he’s pretty well used to you going on all kinds of wild adventures now. The druids have told him enough, remember, we passed Avalon on the way here?”

“I know that,” said Lisa, shaking her head as Louisa rubbed her back. “It’s just- I dunno, I guess I’m overwhelmed or something. For a while there, I wasn’t sure if… I’d ever be able to come home.”

“One thing at a time,” said Louisa, looking ahead of them. Mercifully, there weren’t too many farmhands or strangers here to witness the homecoming. Lisa didn’t need all that excitement, not on her first day back home.

“You’re right,” said Lisa, taking a deep breath and straightening her shoulders. “One thing at a time. C’mon, Starshine, let’s go reunite with dad.” Starshine gave a happy nicker as they stepped forward, Goldmist walking in time with him so that Louisa was always at her girlfriend’s side.

“Hey, Lisa!” a familiar voice called, and both girls looked up to see Josh jogging over from the arena that he usually stood by, arm upraised in a wave. “Long time, no see.”

“Oh, Josh, hey,” said Lisa, bringing Starshine to a gentle stop. “Yeah, it has been a while, hasn’t it?”

“Sure has,” said Josh, nodding. “I was beginning to think that you’d run away to Hollywood.” Lisa laughed, though Josh could have no idea why she found that so amusing.

“Definitely not that,” said Lisa. “But thanks, I needed that laugh.”

“You’re… welcome, I think?” said Josh. “But anyway, welcome home, Lise.”

“Thank you,” said Lisa, eyes glittering with emotion as she looked at him. “It’s good to be home.”

“So, how was the world?” Josh asked.

“Oh, it was… big,” said Lisa. “And exciting and crazy and stressful and…” she yawned, and Louisa wasn’t sure if it was forced or not. Whatever it was, it was enough for Josh to step back, his expression suddenly regretful.

“Oh, sorry, you must be exhausted after those long flights, and then there’s all that jet lag,” said Josh. “You go and get some rest, Lise, I’m sure we can catch up later.”

“Looking forward to it,” said Lisa.

“Oh, I’ve even set up a brand new race, it’ll be good for Starshine to stretch his legs after such a long break,” said Josh.

“So long as he doesn’t overexert himself and hurt himself,” Louisa muttered under her breath. Josh turned to look at her, his expression… cooler now.

“Oh, hi Louisa,” said Josh. “I’ll just, uh… be over there.” He gestured back to the arena, and Louisa hid a smile in a glance in the other direction as he went. 

“He’s never quite forgiven you for giving him hell after he moved to the ranch,” said Lisa as the two continued on the short distance to the house. Louisa giggled.

“Try to steal my girl, and see what happens,” said Louisa. Though it hadn’t been malicious, not really, just… leaving his hat on the weathervane, placing a burr under his saddle (before healing Pearl Hart, of course, for she was innocent in this whole mess), pushing him into a water trough. Little things like that. Lisa, of course, had found the whole thing hilarious, as had Carl.

Now, though, Lisa seemed a far cry from the girl who’d once laughed at a boy’s expense. Now, she seemed smaller, withdrawn. Scared, almost, as she dismounted Starshine and approached the back porch. She could see a magazine with herself on the cover on the small round table just outside the back door, and she sucked in a deep breath to steady herself.

“Good to see that he keeps up with all things you,” said Louisa, nodding towards the magazine. She picked it up, flicking through it, smiling at the images of her girlfriend.

Before Lisa could even knock on the door, the cat flap opened, ejecting a rather happy-looking Barcode, who gave a happy chirp before butting his head against Lisa’s leg. Lisa cooed, crouching down to pet the creature.

“Aww, hey, buddy,” said Lisa. The cat flap opened two more times, and Lisa was soon surrounded by three of the local barn cats, the other two being Rusty, Louisa’s ginger tom adopted from a boy at Jorvik Stables, and Princess, a fluffy white cat who lived up to her name. Lisa grinned as the cats butted against her chin and neck, tails waving in the air.

This was the sight that Carl Peterson saw when he opened the door, smiling down at his daughter with a chuckle.

“I thought I heard voices,” said Carl. “Did you come home to see me or the cats?”

“Sorry, dad,” said Lisa with a grin, finally managing to disentangle herself from the cats and step forward to give her dad a hug. He hugged her back even tighter, burying his nose in the top of her head. Louisa watched, her own smile wobbly as her eyes misted over with emotion. She set the magazine back on the table before crouching down to busy herself with petting the cats.

“Welcome home, sweetheart,” Carl mumbled into his daughter’s hair. 

“Good to be home, dad,” said Lisa, her voice cracking. Carl rubbed her arms and back, blinking tears from his own eyes.

“Do you want some food or something to drink or a shower or… what do you need?” Carl asked, giving his daughter a gentle smile despite the concern evident in his eyes, the way that his muscles tensed. “One of your, erm… druid friends came over and told me that you’ve had a bit of a rough time recently.”

“Yeah,” said Lisa with a sigh. “That about sums it up. And honestly, I could sleep for a week.” She’d slept at Linda’s the night before, since her place was closer, but she hadn’t slept well. She also hadn’t showered. Not that she smelled, just… the pink dust coating her was troubling to look at, to say the least. She also smelled a little, but Louisa was polite enough to not say anything about it.

“You can run a bath for yourself if you want,” said Carl. “It’s no problem. Louisa can help you out, if you don’t want your old man babying you.”

“Dad,” said Lisa with a roll of her eyes, cheeks pinking with a blush. She looked at Louisa, though, catching her gaze with a smile.

“Hey, I don’t mind giving you a sponge bath,” said Louisa, waggling her eyebrows. Carl chuckled, stepping back to let the two girls (and three cats) inside.

The house was much the same as Louisa remembered it, having not set foot on the ranch much after Lisa had disappeared. It just didn’t feel the same without her, though she had stayed for a little while during Lisa’s actual tour. It was only when she hadn’t returned home that Louisa had left the ranch, headed to Valedale to help out the druids in their search.

“It’s the same,” Lisa breathed, fresh tears coming to her eyes which she quickly scrubbed away. She sniffed, looking around the small mudroom that opened into the kitchen. She stepped through, leaving her boots in the mudroom, and slowly made her way into the kitchen, fingertips trailing along the wooden surface of the island bench. Everything was wooden, matching the cottage’s aesthetic. Even the wooden floorboards underfoot, though the oven and stovetop were merely a very similar colour to the wood. Contrary to what one might expect from a bachelor, Carl Peterson kept his space tidy and looking rather pretty. Or perhaps he’d had some female company over the weeks, if the rumours of Penny Cloudmill hanging about the ranch were true.

“Course it is,” said Carl. “You know me, I’m a man of my habits. Besides, I wanted you to be able to come back to something familiar. Even before… whatever it was happened.”

“Thank you,” said Lisa, stepping towards him and giving him a tight hug. She inhaled his woodsy, horsey scent, and then pulled away again, eyes still glossy with tears.

“So, tea? Coffee? Cake? Sleep for a decade? Shower?” Carl asked, rubbing his hands together. “Penny left some lemon cake.”

“So the rumours are true!” Louisa blurted before she could stop herself. Carl chuckled.

“Rumours?” Carl asked, turning to her as Lisa grounded herself by taking a little tour of the house, running her fingers over walls and tables and counters. “Have people been talking about me?”

“Oh, just… saying that you’ve had some female company of late,” said Louisa. She held her hands up. “Don’t worry, I’m not judging, I’m glad that you’re at least making some friends.” Carl laughed.

“Sure you’re not my daughter?” Carl asked. “I thought she’d be the one giving me the ‘so your dad is dating again’ lecture.”

“The what lecture?” Louisa repeated in disbelief. Carl snorted a laugh, shaking his head.

“Sorry, Penny was showing me this stupid book the other day,” said Carl. “Don’t worry about it. But seriously, I thought that Lisa would…” Louisa sighed, shaking her head sadly.

“She probably would, if her homecoming had been remotely normal,” said Louisa. She took a seat at the table.

“Tea?” Carl asked. Louisa nodded.

“Please,” said Louisa. Carl filled the kettle with water, then placed it on the stovetop before he took a seat at the table.

“The druids told me that it was related to Lisa’s secret life,” said Carl. “Don’t worry, I’m not expecting the full, true story. But is she okay?”

“She’s got a lot of recovery ahead of her,” said Louisa. “Mentally, I mean. We really need a druid therapist, there’s only so much lying you can do to a regular therapist.”

“You guys don’t get therapy?” Carl asked, squinting. 

“Afraid not,” said Louisa, shaking her head with a sigh. Carl frowned as he got to his feet, the kettle boiling behind him. Elsewhere in the house, the pipes clunked, signalling that the shower or bath had been started.

“Is she… okay to be on her own, do you think?” Carl asked. “She was shaking when I hugged her.”

“She’ll call out if she needs us,” said Louisa. “But I’ll check on her in a few minutes, just in case.”

“Thank you,” said Carl, smiling at her. “That puts my old heart at ease.”

“And speaking of old heart,” said Louisa, a teasing note in her voice. “Is there something going on between you and Ms Cloudmill?”

“Well,” said Carl, a flush to his cheeks as he poured water into a teapot which he then placed on the table along with two mugs. “I wouldn’t say that it’s romantic in nature, but… she is good company. She likes the horses, though she hasn’t ridden in ages.”

“Have you been giving her lessons?” Louisa asked. “That seems like a nice… friendly thing to do.”

“I have, actually,” said Carl, pouring himself a mug of tea. “That’s the real reason she’s been hanging around, I think.”

“If you say so,” said Louisa, taking a sip of her own tea after pouring it for herself.

“How have things been with the druids?” Carl asked. “In as… much as you can tell me, anyway.”

“Well, you know the saying about the proverbial and the fan,” said Louisa. Carl almost choked on his tea. “Getting Lisa back was a very good step forward, though. Now, we just have to find Anne and Meteor and then… who knows from there.”

“No rest for the wicked,” said Carl.

“Well, the wicked certainly are not resting. Unfortunately,” said Louisa with a scowl. Carl nodded sagely.

“I have faith in you girls,” said Carl. “You keep the world on its axis, according to the druids.”

“That we do,” said Louisa. “And it’s not an easy job. Enough about my work, though. How has the ranch been?”

“It’s been great, as always,” said Carl, a note of pride in his voice. Well-earned pride, Louisa knew. “Plenty of campers coming from Moorland to try out the western way of life thanks to Josh and his trips to and from Moorland, Mary is still absolutely terrible at keeping track of her animals, and our herd of Quarter Horses just keeps on growing.”

“Any new foals lately?” Louisa asked, a sparkle in her brown eyes. Carl grinned.

“And lambs and calves and baby chickens,” said Carl. Louisa gave a squeal of delight. “Think Lisa will like those?”

“I think some animal therapy could be just what the doctor ordered,” said Louisa. “And I’m one of the Star Circle members, so that’s a genuine doctor’s order. Technically.” Carl chuckled.

“I’ve got no problems with that,” said Carl.

“Me neither,” said Lisa, and the two of them looked up to find her standing there in the doorway, her hair wet from the shower, eyes red-rimmed, skin scrubbed until it was almost red. She’d changed into different clothing, though she still wore her mother’s jacket.

“Have a good shower?” Carl asked his daughter as she sat down at the table. Carl stood to fetch her a mug.

“Yeah, it’s good to feel clean again,” said Lisa, nodding thankfully as she took the teapot and poured herself a mug of tea. Louisa pushed the sugar bowl and milk jug towards her, Lisa taking them thankfully before adding more sugar than was necessary to her tea.

“That’s good,” said Carl. “I was just telling Louisa about the new baby animals on the farm.”

“So I heard,” said Lisa. “A doctor’s order, huh?” She looked at her girlfriend, amusement glimmering in her gaze.

“Indeed,” said Louisa, pushing her glasses up her nose. Lisa gave her a small smile.

“After I sleep for a week,” said Lisa.

“Fortunately, sleeping for a week is also part of my treatment plan for you,” said Louisa.

“Are kisses and cuddles also a part of it?” Lisa teased. Louisa leaned over and pecked her on the cheek.

“Only if you’re a good patient,” said Louisa.

“For you, I think I can behave,” said Lisa. Louisa smiled at her, Carl smiling at them both. It was good to have them back where they belonged.


End file.
